Author's Note: Sorry for the delay posting this one, folks. A lot of real life issues coming up but I should have an exciting update for you soon (in addition to the one about me and my writing). As always, Mike Ownby gets 101% of the credit for getting my writing shipshape, Mayflower style.

The heating in Finn's truck didn't seem to be working.

When Rachel commented on it, he simply handed her a quilt from the backseat with an apologetic shrug. "We've been so busy lately fixing everyone's cars but mine," Finn explained.

Rachel draped the quilt over her knees. There was enough material to go over her shoulders as well and she gratefully snuggled into its softness. "That's a good thing, I think. It means that the business is doing well."

He offered her his lopsided grin. "If I don't freeze first. Here, we should get going quick. It's warmer at the garage." Finn didn't wait for a reply before he pulled onto the road.

She laughed, but her mind was already elsewhere. Riding shotgun reminded her of the old days; not just of her and Finn driving around after school, but of the time she and Quinn rented a car and drove through Hudson Valley.

"Finn? Can I ask you something?"

"Yeah, gimme a sec," he said, turning the radio down. "Okay."

"Did you ever think about us? Like… what if we never broke up?"

"Oh, uhm. Wow." He chuckled awkwardly. "Going straight for the hard questions."

"I'm sorry. It's my first Christmas without Quinn and I'd rather not dwell on it," said Rachel bluntly. "As you saw earlier, talking to Santana didn't go very well for either of us."

"It's okay. I was just surprised that you would wanna talk to me about… well, anything. That's all it is."

Rachel was surprised – and just a tiny bit guilty. "I don't think you're not a good conversation partner, Finn, and I'm sorry if there's anything I've said or done that made you feel that way."

Finn's truck rolled to a halt at a junction. He sighed and leaned forward, resting his forearms on the wheel. "I know that. It's just… we used to date, Rachel. I used to date Quinn. She's not here now, and that's messed up."

Rachel pressed her lips together. She was a fool; she should have realized she wasn't the only person hurting. "I'm sorry. I should have considered your feelings more carefully. You don't have to answer."

"No, it's okay. I do wanna talk." He paused. "I haven't thought about us in ages, but honestly, there were a few times over the years I wondered what would've happened if we'd stayed together." He fidgeted with the leather upholstery of the wheel. "I'd have gotten on that train. I'd have followed you to New York instead of breaking up with you."

Rachel smiled sadly. "And I wouldn't have rekindled my friendship with Quinn while trying to get over you. I wouldn't have ended up falling in love with her."

An awkward silence settled.

"Yeah," said Finn eventually. "Funny how life works out sometimes." He put a hand on Rachel's knee, squeezing briefly. "I mean, there's good and bad stuff. Quinn really loved you, and the two of you were good together. And you wouldn't have had Elly without her, right?"

Rachel smiled, thinking of her daughter. "She's such a brat now. She likes to hold that stuffed monkey you gave her and babble about it. I think she's trying to say your name because she knows you gave it to her."

Finn's face lit up. "You're bringing her for dinner with Burt and Mom before you guys head back to the city, right? I can't wait."

"Of course, Finn. I wouldn't dream of it missing out on it. She's practically your daughter too, now."

It was lucky for Rachel that Finn was distracted by the traffic crossing and didn't answer; because on second thought, the words that came out of her mouth were words that – after their conversation – had a very different meaning. "Judy was supposed to have dinner with us at Santana's house tonight," she said in a poor attempt at changing the subject.

Finn frowned. "She was?"

Thankfully, he was easy to distract. "I called her last week – just checking up on her," said Rachel. "I told her Elly and I would be home for Christmas, and I invited her to dinner. She told me Mrs Lopez had already asked her, so I told her I would see her then."

"We hardly see her around. Mom says she sees her at the grocery store every couple of months or so."

"I'm worried about her."

"I know."

Rachel frowned at the buildings outside. "Finn, I know I haven't lived in Lima for years, but even I can see we aren't going to the garage."

Finn didn't answer her at first. He kept his eyes on the road, a grin on his face.

"Finn?"

"It's a surprise," he said, and signalled left.

"What kind of surprise do you have in mind? Because this route leads toward – " and Rachel cut herself off when they arrived in the parking lot of William McKinley High School.

"We're here."

Rachel didn't say anything. She rubbed condensation off the passenger window and peered outside at the familiar facade of the building. The last time she remembered being here was when Mr Schuester had held a memorial with the Glee club for Quinn.

"Come on, Rach," said Finn gently. He rested a hand on Rachel's elbow. "It's important."

She nodded. "I know. You wouldn't bring me here now if it wasn't." Rachel smiled at him, and then got out of the truck. She stood beside it, hands tucked into her pockets, taking in the sight.

"This way."

"Finn?"

Rachel walked briskly to keep up with Finn's urgent stride. He dug into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a bunch of keys, fitting one into the front door's lock.

Rachel's jaw dropped.

"Finn! Where'd you get that? Does Mr Schue know about this? I know he's the principal now, but that doesn't mean that he can hand out the school keys to just anyone, even you."

He chuckled. "Relax, Rach," said Finn, closing the door firmly behind them and locking it. "I'm a Glee club advisor."

"That still doesn't explain why you have a key to the school," she said, unconvinced.

"I'm returning the keys to Mr Schue tomorrow, don't worry. He lent the bunch to me when he told me it was done earlier than expected, and I asked if you could be the first one to see it." As he talked, Finn led the way down silent corridors towards the choir room.

"It?"

"It was supposed to be a surprise for all of us," said Finn as though Rachel hadn't spoken. "Glee's class of 2012. Mr Schue made sure we'd all be in town for it."

It dawned on Rachel why she had suddenly received an email from her Glee club teacher inviting her to a Christmas party, years after graduation. "Everyone's in town?"

"Yep. Or they will be." Finn had the keys out again. He unlocked the choir room and pushed the door open, standing to one side for Rachel to enter, smiling at her expectantly.

She did, hesitantly. Rachel wondered what could be so important in the old choir room that Finn would have to bring her here now, before the rest of the club would see it.

Then she saw the large framed picture of Quinn, and her breath caught in her throat.

"It was Sue's idea at first, funnily enough." Finn's voice was quiet but echoed in the room. "She framed Quinn's Cheerio uniform and hung it in the girls' locker room. Mr Schue thought it would be a great idea if we could do something for Quinn here."

Slowly, Rachel stepped forward to where the picture hung, close to the piano. Quinn looked back at her, a small smile on her face. Quinn looked… young. Soft. Words Rachel would never had used to describe her when they were in high school. She wasn't wearing her Cheerio uniform, but a simple dress; a detail Rachel appreciated.

Her name was written underneath, together with her year of birth and death. But Rachel's attention was drawn to the gold lettering at the bottom which said:

You can't change your past. But you can let go and start your future.

"It's beautiful," said Rachel. She reached out a hand to trail shaky fingers along the letters of Quinn's name. "I'm sure Quinn would have approved." Certainly, this Quinn was more like the one Rachel chose to remember, instead of the one the cancer had taken.

Being in this room and looking at Quinn's soft hazel eyes brought back many memories of high school, of her friends, of music. But rather than being torn down emotionally, Rachel felt stronger, as though she was wearing her emotions like armor.

"I'm glad you think so." Finn's hand settled on Rachel's shoulder as he stood beside her.

"Are we actually going to the garage at all, or was it all just a ruse to get me here?"

Finn chuckled. "Both? Mom and Burt do want to see you."

"So for Mr Schue's party, am I supposed to act surprised, or can I say that I've already met the guest of honor?"

"I'm sure everyone wouldn't mind you being the first," said Finn. "Mr Schue always said you two were the real success story of the New Directions."

Rachel shook her head. "We were hardly the most successful people, and not even the only couple." Off the top of her head, Rachel could mention Brittany's inventions, Santana's sterling record as one of New York's best public prosecutors; there was also Mercedes' recording career, Mike's chain of dance academies, the award-winning films Artie had directed, Tina's fashion house…

Finn shook his head. "That's not important. He meant turning enemies into friends – okay, well, something more for you and Quinn. He loved how music managed to overturn all the high school stereotypes and Glee club became a safe space for all of us to do what we loved, beyond what was expected of us. He always said you guys were the best example of everything that made New Directions great."

"Oh."

"I mean – remember our sophomore year? You and Quinn were always at each other's throats."

"That was partly your fault," teased Rachel, smacking Finn's arm lightly. "I wonder what we saw in you back then."

Finn laughed at her. He rubbed his arm, pretending to be hurt.

They walked on through the halls of the school, voices echoing and giving life to the memories.

The path from the garage to the house was freshly shoveled. Rachel waited on the porch as Finn fumbled with his key. "I'm home!" he yelled into the house. "I brought Rachel!"

Carole Hudson-Hummel emerged from the kitchen, followed by the scent of ginger and baking. "Rachel, it's been so long! How are you? How's Elly?"

"Hi, Carole," she said, returning the hug. "Elly's with my fathers while they catch up on grandpa time. We're both good."

"I ran into her at Santana's," explained Finn. "She's just here to say hi."

"Well, you two have wonderful timing," said Carole. "Have a gingersnap cookie, they're fresh from the oven just as you got here." She selected a few of the nicer ones and put them on a plate for Rachel, as Finn helped himself to a handful, blowing on his fingers. "They're vegan, dear, don't worry," she added as she handed the plate to Rachel.

"Oh. I – thank you so much, Carole," said Rachel. Truthfully, she was still floored that the mother of her ex-boyfriend could still be so considerate to her.

Finn munched a cookie eagerly. "Thanks, Mom," he said. "We're gonna go to the garage now so Rachel can say hi to Burt."

Carole nodded, and turned to Rachel. "I'll see you soon here for dinner, I hope."

"Of course, Carole."

She followed Finn to the business part of Hummel Tires and Lube, feeling very much like they were in high school again, back when she and Finn were dating. He'd been saving up for college by working part-time for Burt, so many of their dates consisted of her hanging out in the garage watching him work. Many times, they'd carry a homemade snack with them.

"Burt?" Finn stripped off his jacket as he went. He fetched the set of overalls from the peg on the wall, replacing them with his jacket.

"Under here."

Rachel walked over to the blue truck at the far end and bent over. "Hi, Burt."

He rolled out from underneath. "Rachel, it's good to see you," he exclaimed. "I would hug you, but this fellow had a leak somewhere." Burt waved the wrench he was holding at his oil-streaked overalls.

"Don't worry about it."

Finn reappeared in his work overalls. "Got your text," he said to Burt. "Where's Mr Wilson's Lincoln?"

"Lot One." Burt wiped a smear of oil from his cheek. "Go on then, Rachel. We'll talk later after I get cleaned up."

"Rachel's just here to say hi, she's already got plans tonight," explained Finn.

Rachel nodded. "Carole's already invited me for dinner soon."

"Ah, good." He disappeared back under the truck.

She followed Finn to the car he was supposed to be working on. Rachel was glad that the pleasantries were over and done with; she wasn't sure how much longer she could stand to see the pity in Burt and Carole's eyes.

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

Finn got down on a creeper seat and slid underneath. "Let me take a quick look at this," he said. "Let me know when you need to be home and I'll drive you there."

"Alright."

"Cool. Pass me a thirteen millimeter wrench, would you?"

The toolbox that stood to one side was unmistakably Finn's. It had a Polaroid pasted to its side, of New Directions holding their 2012 National championship trophy. Rachel opened it and frowned down at the jumbled mess inside.

"You need to take better care of your tools."

"I know," said Finn, sounding sheepish.

Rachel rummaged through the wrenches, studying each one in turn until she found the one he wanted. "Here."

He rolled out and squinted at it. "I'm surprised you remembered what a wrench even looked like," he said teasingly.

"I've gotten a lot better with tools," replied Rachel, rolling her eyes. "Believe it or not, I know which is the right end of a saw to hold."

He laughed. Metallic clanking followed the sound of his laughter, the sound of the wrench being put to work. Rachel's attention, however, had already drifted to the Polaroid picture.

"… Actually, Finn," said Rachel, "could you drive me someplace else tonight?"

Judy Fabray's life hadn't been easy in recent years. Her ex-husband had predeceased her youngest daughter, and the grief of both losses were permanently etched in the lines on her face.

But tonight, she looked years younger as she stood in front of Quinn's plaque, taking in the sight. And for a moment, Rachel felt like Quinn was with them.